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#azula meta
balanceoflightanddark · 2 months
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I feel one of the scariest things about Ozai is not necessarily the physical abuse he pulls on Zuko or Azula. It's the mental abuse and how under the radar it is.
Yes, it is easy to look at Zuko's scar and be horrified by his abuse. What I feel is more effective was that Ozai made Zuko believe that he deserved it. That he had to go on this three-year odyssey to try and find the Avatar for a chance at gaining his love back. Their reunion isn't about Ozai apologizing. It's Ozai saying how proud he is of Zuko for making up for HIS mistake. He doesn't mention the Agni Kai at all, and when Zuko does turn, he tries to make it sound like some exercise in learning respect.
Same thing with Azula. Ozai puts the mantle of Fire Lord on her shoulders, effectively giving her the responsibility of running a country. He puts on so much pressure to have her to be perfect (pitting her against Zuko, sending her out on missions). The only approval that he gives is for her performance which reflects on him. Basically, he treats her more like an asset more than as a person. And any failing she makes is on her part.
He puts so much responsibility on both Zuko and Azula, but never takes any for himself. So if they displease his high expectations, that's their fault.
And they believe him.
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julietwiskey1 · 5 months
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I think this panel is one of the most interesting ones in the entire comic.
It confirms the long time theory that the asylum was never about treatment of its patients. But rather a convenient place to make daughters of nobles disappear so they can’t cause a fuss.
Azula needed help after the Agni Kai. But they did not send her to a place that would give it to her. Even if they had good intentions at the asylum they probably had little to no experience with treating actual patients. So they restrained her and locked her up and abused her because they didn’t know what else to do.
It also hints at why Azula was there. Not to treat her mental health issues. But to turn her into a proper sister and niece for Zuko and Iroh. A place to make her subservient to her family as they see fit. And the other girls were in there for the same reason.
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bellatrixobsessed1 · 6 months
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Also can we talk for a sec about how Azula dreams of Zuko without his scar? Like I've seen so many people talk about how Azula is happy that Zuko was burned.
Okay, so why does he appear in her dream (this thing that is clearly intended to showcase her ideal world) without the scar? She dreams of a family where Zuko wasn't abused and they're just a family.
Of course it has some Azula touches where the Avatar is dead and Ba Sing Se is conquered. So her dreams are still infused with the beliefs instilled within her. But she also has her own desires in there which is to be hugged by her mom and have a family that loves her and gets along. One that is functional.
I do think that Zuko's scar bothers her and that her father's abuse of him bothers her. Otherwise he'd have is scar in the dream and he wouldn't be sitting peacefully next to Ozai.
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pizzaboat · 17 days
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I swear the only reason child/teen characters like Azula get so demonised is because people see kids as beings that are meant to be wholy good.
Any kid that fails to be perfect, acts out, or is anyway morally complex compared to an adult, they are then no longer a child and dehumanised in people's eyes. The only other word for them is "monster" because people can't understand why the image of a child in their head isn't lining up with what they're seeing, and they make hateful speciulations because of it.
And Azula (no suprise) is a "bad kid." She's violent, angry on the inside, occasionally cruel, and takes her insecurities out on other people.
She doesn't act like how people expect a child would react to seeing their brother be burned by their father, and people ignore the context of why she might react the way she did, or just don't consider that Azula might have only been smiling in Irohs POV
Kids aren't "good". They're emotional. They react to emotion, they sometimes feel empathy, and how they choose to use that empathy ultimately decides how society judges their morality.
Azula had no one bothering to teach her right from wrong, outside of Ursa, who'd just yell at Azula and send her to her room. Ursa didnt know what to do with her and didnt care if Azula heard her audibly wondering what was "wrong with that child".
Ozai punished Zuko for the same traits that people claim Azula is evil for not displaying. Why on earth would Azula hesitate before trying to kill and or, best her enemies? Why would she show honest emotions? Why would she defy her father? Why would she make the switch over to good with no incentive to?
She's a 14 year old kid who's watched Zuko be burned and be discarded by her father when he was 13 for publicly "disrespecting him." Even if you don't think Azula cares about Zuko, that doesn't mean she isn't getting the same message that the rest of the public onlookers are getting. Ozai doesn't tolerate insubordination
She's been alone with Ozia for 3 years. Raised by him her whole life. No one else has ever given a damn about her, and she's more sheltered from the real world than regular kids in the firenation
Azula is the only one looking out for Azula, and if she has to parrot what her father says and does, and doing that keeps her safe from Ozia and the rest of the world, why would she stop? Why would she act like a regular good kid? Why would she even know how to?
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akiizayoi4869 · 3 months
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Been having some Azula thoughts (really, when do I not?) and every time I think about this girl, I'm in awe as well as baffled about how the writers just...got so many things right and wrong at the same time when it comes to her. Mostly in the way how she was abused, and how people both in universe and out react to that. Like, it's very clear that the writers themselves didn't realize that they wrote her as an abuse victim until way after the show ended, and it's evident by the way how she was handled during the show, as well as in post canon content. In universe, the two people around her who could have helped her (Iroh and Ursa) don't realize that she was being abused because Ozai favored her over Zuko, so they figured that she was safe with him, whereas Zuko wasn't. Obviously this wasn't the case at all, but it shows you just how fucked up the kind of abuse Azula suffered really is. Because it's subtle. So subtle that the people around the victim tend to not realize it until much later. And this unfortunately happens in real life too. What's so damn infuriating about this though, is the way how the writers just dropped the ball so damn hard with it. Because it's framed as being Azula's fault. That she rejected any form of help she could have gotten (which is a lie because she was never offered any help to begin with) and her circumstances are her fault. That the adults in her life didn't fail her actually. Even though they absolutely did. And I wish that canon would fucking acknowledge that, because man that would be one powerful story to tell. The adults owning up to their mistakes, and actually trying to do right by her for a change. And yet they just absolutely refuse to. It's almost like they really don't see Azula as an abuse victim because she was mean to people, and manipulated them. Which is such a black and white view of abuse, and a dangerous one at that. It's even more stupid when you realize that Zuko wasn't a picture perfect abuse victim, and yet they were still able to acknowledge that he was abused. Basically what I'm saying is that the writers have a perfect example in their hands of how being the golden child/favorite child of an abuser isn't a good thing at all, but they unfortunately fail to utilize this effectively.
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ilikepjo24 · 4 months
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On Azula burning turtleducks...
She doesn't.
That's it, that's the meta.
Of course that's not all, I have proof.
Some antis used Azula in the Spirit Temple as "proof" of her burning turtleducks because of her flashback from when she learned how to firebend.
And that's stupid.
Azula most definitely did set a turtleduck looking thing on fire. But it wasn't an actual turtleduck. You can tell by the way it's drawn.
It's laying down unnaturally and it's not trying to get up despite the fact that it should be startled by the person approaching it, especially if the person approaching it is someone that hurt it.
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Despite the fact that is has been picked up, it doesn't react at all, doesn't try to escape and doesn't turn to look at the person that picked it up.
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A new person has entered the picture and the turtleduck has no reacted with curiosity or fear caused by the new presence and motion, when other living creatures in the panel (Azula) have.
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The turtleduck is literally on fire and isn't making any noise of pain, it's not trying to escape, it's not writhing, it's not reacting at all. It's just sitting there like "Is it hot in here? Are you hot?"
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The turtleduck is making no attempts to nurse it's wounds of escape from the grip of the person that had set it on fire. It's showing no fear or pain or any emotion at all.
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The mother of the little monster doesn't give a fuck about the turtleduck. You'd expect a woman that wants her children to treat animals and plants with respect, would stop her daughter from harming a turtleduck. Realistically, if it was real, Ursa would remove it from Azula's hands and try to nurse it to health or return it to its mother, but she doesn't. She doesn't even care. She only pays attention to Azula, because Azula is the only living thing in the picture. The turtleduck is not real. All Ursa cares about is Azula's firebending and it's what she's disappointed at. She can't exactly lecture a kid for developing naturally, so she stays quiet. But she very much can lecture a kid on setting an animal on fire, so if the turtleduck was real, she'd be scolding Azula.
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To try and villainize Azula by painting her as a turtleduck burner is dumb when the turtleduck isn't even real. It's probably a toy of hers or Zuko's. Probably hers, since Ursa isn't saying anything about Azula stealing from Zuko, but it could be Zuko's too, considering we know Azula burned his toys.
She did do that, right?
Wrong, possibilities are she actually didn't.
But that's for another meta.
Anyway, Azula doesn't burn turtleducks, she only throws bread at them.
Thus proven.
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missaccuracy · 2 months
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Maybe this is an unpopular opinion, but Ursa's treatment of Azula is actually abuse.
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" The opposite side of scapegoating is favoritism. "
“Favoritism is the practice of systematically giving positive, preferential treatment to one child, subordinate or associate among a family or group of peers…. Favoritism becomes dysfunctional when actions and opportunities, resources and liberties are systematically denied or applied inequitably for no logical reason and without just cause.” (Out of the FOG)
Favouritism is just another type of emotional abuse, which Zuko has also endured.
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" I could sit here and complain about how our mom liked Zuko more than me, but I don't really care. "
Ursa traumatized Azula to the point where she developed a coping mechanism. " I don't really care. " Because if she doesn't care, she can't get hurt.
1. Ursa is a horrible monster
2. And Ursa is completely blameless in how Azula turned out, and it's actually all Ozai and Azula's fault...
Are both inaccurate interpretations of the show.
The sad truth, is that many parents don't even anknowledge they have a favourite child, but it is abuse regardless, because they are showing different treatment with their actions.
Ursa still can aknowledge her mistakes and do better, but we can't excuse abuse and act like she didn't leave an emotional scar on Azula, because she left it.
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phoukanamedpookie · 14 days
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hot take from me: I don't think Azula needs a redemption arc. I think she needs help, therapy, and care.
But saying that a child who was abused and who yes did bad things need to be redeemed or to redeem themselves leaves such a bad taste in my mouth.
What children do when they are trying to survive abuse and are in survival mode can not really be judged as good/bad dichotomy.
Because that child is not existing in world of good/bad, they are not making choices in regards in this moral thing to do, the good thing, the right thing vs not.
They are living in a world of will this help survive this moment yes or no. Even if they don't realize.
Azula should and can apologize for hurting people, but she doesn't need to be redeemed.
And in turn the adults in Azula's life should be apologizing to her and be trying to right by her. Ursa and Iroh failed her and did not protect her.
Azula and Zuko were both abused and abandoned by both their parents in diffrent ways.
Zuko at least had Iroh to help him, to guide him, and to step in as a parental figure. He also had some positive memories associated with their mother.
This is not to say one's abuse is worse or better than the other because that is not how abuse and trauma works. It is simply point out that Zuko thankfully had a support system, a safety net where Azula had none.
That lack of a support system is very damaging. Azula is some who has been hurt and who is realistically deals with a lot of fear even if she puts up this fearless aura about her.
She like Zuko has trauma. She like Zuke deserves understanding and compassion.
She like Aang, Toph, Katara, Sokka, and Zuko is a child too.
👆👆👆
Also, lemme dig up that post I made about Azula just starting to gain a yetzer tov because she was literally too young to have one before.
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zuko-always-lies · 20 days
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A collection of seyaryminamoto's ATLA takes
For those who are not aware, @seyaryminamoto is someone who has been in the Azula fandom a very long time and who has written many brilliant metas that have greatly influenced my understanding of Azula, Zuko, and other characters. Thus, I decided to put together a post with links to all of her metas that I could find:
On the flaws in Zuko's redemption arc.
More on flaws in Zuko's arc.
On the four most overrated characters in ATLA
Yet more on flaws in Zuko's arc and why fans overrate and misunderstand his character.
Why Zuko's arc didn't revolve around him learning compassion
On reoccurring sibling conflicts in ATLA and LoK and Su and Lin
On the lack of accountability in modern story-telling and Zuko
On certain patterns of evil younger siblings in LoK and ATLA
On the Smoke and Shadow and Azula
On Gene Yang not understanding Azula
More on Azula
More on flaws in Zuko's redemption
On Azula, Iroh, and Zuko being held to different standards
On why the Fire Nation accepting Zuko as ruler makes no sense
On sexism in the Fire Nation
On whether Zuko or Aang is more moral
On how the ATLA finale could have been changed to give Azula a better fate.
On why Azula's breakdown was rushed, writing wise.
On why Iroh is sexist.
Edits:
On whether Zuko understands the concept of "Duty"
On Lo and Li and Azula
On Zuko, the Fire Teens, and "The Beach"
On Zuko, the Southern Raiders, and Justice
On Zuko and his "life-changing field trips"
On Zuko and what his arc could have been
On the issues with Katara's and her "arc"
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Have you noted that no one from Azula's family was shown to express love and affection towards her?
That is mostly true. Ozai's affection is clearly conditional (and full on manipulation at worse, like we see in the finale), Ursa canonically favors Zuko to the point that we never see her spending any alone time with Azula like she did with Zuko, and while Iroh gave her a toy like he did to Zuko the toy in question was so OBVIOUSLY wrong for a kid like Azula that it's comical AND show's he did not really know his niece at all.
But there is a constant exception.
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Zuko's relationship with Azula is complicated. He clearly admires her strength and power, but he hates how she uses it. She lied to him many times, was seen apparently cheering Ozai on during the Agni Kai, tried to have him imprisoned and even said she'd celebrate being an only child - and then allows him to come home as a hero after Ba Sing Se, even though SHE had the control of the Dai Li and was not yet aware Aang could have survived, meaning she had nothing to gain from it.
And when she lets him know that if he's caught talking to Iroh people might think he is a traitor too, and explicitly says "Believe it or not, I'm actually looking out for you" Zuko drops his innitial suspicion that she wanted something and that's why she was helping him.
On The Beach, he just follows her when she say their old family home is depressing and they shouldn't waste their time there. When she's asking him who she is angry at, she mentions herself and Zuko explicitly says that is not the case.
He doesn't trust her and know she has a tendency to mock or full on lie to him... yet when he wants to know about Fire Lord Sozin he asks her about it, and lets it slide when she mocks him by saying he should make sure the royal painter got his good side - for a character as quick to anger as Zuko, that is a big deal. In Nightmares and Daydreams he also goes to her to find out if he'll be allowed at the war meeting.
More importantly:
1 - Iroh's infamous "She's crazy and needs to go down" line was only said because ZUKO, without anyone putting that idea in his head before, suddenly went "I know what you're going to say. She's my sister and I should be trying to get along with her"
2 - Zuko only jumped into the fight in Ba Sing Se when Azula was being cornered by Aang and Katara.
3 - Zuko looked genuinely shocked and even distressed when she was falling off that cliff. He just sounded so shaken saying "She's... not gonna make it..."
4 - In the writer's own words, Zuko felt no hate but only pity when seeing her breakdown. Katara tried to comfort him because, canonically, even though Zuko and Azula are enemies, this was never what he wanted because he still sees her as family. That's why the Last Agni Kai's music is not the epic you'd expect from a battle, but a tragic one.
5 - Aaron Ehasz, the lead writter for the show, probably the person with the most influence after Bryke, has REPEATEDLY said that he always felt Azula should have gotten a redemption arc, Zuko being an Iroh figure to give her advice and be the only one still by her side when all else was seemingly lost to her forever.
Even the comics (most of which I HATE, mainly because Azula's storyline checks nearly every box for "the mentally ill are inherently evil/less human, so it's fine if literally every other person on the planet mistreats them") didn't fully abandon their complex dynamic.
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Zuko is not a perfect sibling, and for a long chunk of the story he seemed too focused on his own issues for Azula to ever be a factor in his mind (aside from the moments in which she was a potential/explict threat), but he DOES still feel a sense of obligation towards her, to the point that it made him do something no one else in their family had done before or since - actually look at Azula. Not the prodigious daughter/perfect weapon, or the problem child that is difficult to handle, or the pontentially deadly enemy that was in the way, but Azula.
His 14-year-old sister that got on his nerves a lot, was far from the kindest person alive, and that he had a ton of issues with, but that he could never fully hate or even be indifferent to. Because she's family. Because he remembers a happier time in which the gap between them didn't seem so big. Because if things had been slightly different he could have been her. Because he went from wanting to be her to seeing just how miserable her life ended up being - especially compared to the one he now had - and feeling deeply sorry for her.
Now if you guys excuse me, I'm gonna go cry in the corner. Have some wholesome/bittersweet fanart if you wanna cry too.
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balanceoflightanddark · 3 months
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Acknowledgement of Pain
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I think one of the things that I feel Azula in the Spirit Temple gets right is acknowledging one of what I believe to be one of the pillars of her character.
That is, acknowledging what she went through, the pain she endured, was legitimate.
What do I mean by this? Remember that scene where Azula confesses that she feels like she's a monster at the fire pit during "The Beach"?
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The way she brushes off her concerns about what she's doing is wrong? She has problems admitting to what is eating at her and opening her up to others. This is reinforced since...well Zuko isn't exactly the most sympathetic to Azula and her relationship with Mai and Ty Lee is strained. So it's not like she can admit to them either. Growing up under Ozai's influence probably wouldn't help since having concerns or internal struggles would probably be seen as "weak" in his eyes.
And weakness...well we all saw what happened to Zuko.
Privately though, we see another side to her:
Azula: Don't pretend to act proud. I know what you really think of me. You think I'm a monster. ... Azula: Well what choice do I have? Fear is the only reliable way. Even you fear me.
Her strained relationship with Ursa and her belief that she's a monster does eat at her. It's not something she can just brush off so easily. Particularly when she doesn't have anybody to admit it to. Sure, she tries to make excuses like how fear is the only thing she knows how to get people to like her, but that's normal. Again, this is something that's instilled in her for years and it's not something she's good at handling by herself.
On some level, she DOES know she's hurting...but she can't admit it to herself since that would be a betrayal of everything Ozai built her up to be. And since Ozai was the only one who validated stuff like her talent with firebending and being more than just a troubled child, how could she tear that down without tearing herself down?
What I think Azula needs though...what she's craving...is for somebody to validate that yes, she was hurt. That her family and loved ones did hurt her. Yes, it might be misdirected since she lumps the Fire Warriors in there, but it's still valid since she probably wouldn't have a grasp on her feelings. I think what Azula wants is for her pain to be acknowledged and for somebody to say, "that's not right". In the environment she got, she never got the chance. And the spirit didn't help since it just labeled her a monster for rejecting its "redemption".
Hell, even her slaying of the Zuko image demanding she apologize to them doesn't acknowledge that she was hurt too and that neither party can entirely blame the other. It's all take and no give according to the spirit, which rightfully isn't treated as valid by Azula or the narrative. Otherwise, I think she would've faced more repercussions for defying it.
What Azula needs is for her pain to be acknowledged. Not brushed aside or downplayed. I mean to actually be acknowledged and treated with the amount of gravity it deserves.
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hello-nichya-here · 2 months
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Azula's mommy issues how it does (and doesn't) affect her personality and theoretical redemption
Ah, Ursa and how she ties into a possible Azula redemption. I recommend you get a snack and some water, because this answer is gonna be a long one XD
Before we even get to the dynamic between these two characters and how it informed Azula's actions, let's remember THE main thing that is responsible for Azula being the way she is: Indoctrination.
Her nation had been waging war against the rest of the world for 100 hundred years. Azula is 14. For 86 years her family had been telling everyone, including themselves, that the war was just, it was for the good of the world and of the Fire Nation, it was "sharing their glory", it was just them taking over land that was rightfully theirs because of "divine right to rule" (something Azula herself says to Lu Fang when she's taking over Ba Sing Se).
We see children cheering for a puppet version of Fire Lord Ozai in a festival, as he defeats an "evil" Earth Kingdom general. We are explicitly shown that Fire Nation schools lie about things like the Air Nomads, a pacifist culture, having an ARMY that Sozin's men attacked, framing it more as a mutual conflict between equals in which the Fire Nation won, instead of a sudden attack against an entire group of people that were just minding their business.
We see IROH write a letter about how he hopes his family can see Ba Sing Se IF THEY DON'T HAVE TO BURN IT TO THE GROUND to conquer it - and not only do Zuko and Azula both laugh, URSA is also laughing.
Azula was raised to believe her nation had every right to do all the attrocities it commited. And just like Zuko, she is still a teenager, not an adult like her dad, uncle or mom - and while they had less excuse than the Fire Siblings for not knowing any better since they were already grown, they do still have more excuse than Azulon and especially Sozin, since they were ALSO raised to believe that stuff was perfectly normal.
Even if Ursa had been a perfect mom, Azula would likely still be a villain, though maybe less bitter and insecure over feeling unworthy of love (but that would not disappear completely, since Ozai was still an abusive dad that very clearly expected perfection from his children at all times, which is way too much pressure to put on anyone, let alone on two kids. And since she was his favorite, she'd obviously try to copy him, so she wouldn't end up like Zuko, so her more cruel, ruthless side would also be very present).
HOWEVER, that does not change the fact that Ursa's flawed parenting had a deep impact on her daughter.
For starters, even the creators/showrunners and writers of the show have said Zuko is her favorite child - and a parent playing favorites is NEVER good, even if they don't downright abuse the one they don't like as much. And for a kid that is in an abusive home, seeing her brother be treated as completely worthless because he is not the favorite, it isn't that hard to understand how Azula concluded that, if her mom didn't like her as much as she liked Zuko, it's because she didn't like her AT ALL. Add in Ursa's concern over Ozai's influence over Azula and how it's shaping her personality, plus the fact that she said "What's wrong with that child?" WITH AZULA IN THE ROOM, and we have the source of her belief her mom didn't just dislike her, but also saw her as monster.
Because yeah, let's not forget Azula had TWO parents. Two parents that clearly wanted very different things from their children. Ursa was cool with all the imperialism stuff, but she was horrified at the thought of the family being at war with itself, fighting for the crown. She was a bad guy, but she had standards. Meanwhile Ozai was clearly on team "stab everyone in the back to get what you want, then rule by fear." Once her mom was out of the picture, Azula naturally felt like her dad had essentially proven his method was better, since he ended up getting everything he wanted (though Azula does question that in the finale, when she imagines Ursa of all people trying to make her see trying to use fear to force people into supporting/loving her would only further isolate her, showing some part of her DID internalize a point of view that did not align with Ozai's).
But even before Ursa was forced to disappear from her daughter's life, she was already failing to connect with her, but not solely because of Ozai. Think about it. We see lots of scenes of Ursa spending time just with Zuko, and some of her with both of her kids - but never do we get even a single scene just between her and Azula.
When Zuko immitates Azula's bad behavior (because he thought it was cool and funny) and throws bread (not a rock like the fandom insists, BREAD) at the turtleducks, Ursa is visibly shocked and distressed, but she EXPLAINS to Zuko why what he did was wrong (it hurt the baby turtleduck, and thus made the mother mad) in a VERY light-hearted way that he clearly remembers fondly. When Azula says things about Azulon being likely to die soon or Iroh being pathetic, Ursa is shocked and distressed - and either just says "Azula, we don't speak like that" or a very angry "Young lady, not another word" but without ever trying to explain to her why what she did was wrong.
Meanwhile, ZUKO actually says things like "How would you like it if Lu Ten wanted dad to die?" or explaining that Iroh gave up on conquering Ba Sing Se out of grief for his only child. Those two scenes were the CLOSEST Azula got to having someone actually try to explain things to her in a way she could understand - but obviously she's not gonna take her brother as seriously as she would an adult, and Zuko has his own stuff to deal with so he can't step up and be a replacement parent to her like Iroh was to him (and considering how young he was at the time, expecting him to do so would be unreasonable - hell, he likely didn't even notice just how badly Azula needed help until she had her breakdown).
Things get worse if we take the comics as canon (which I don't, but I know a lot of people do). On that version of the story, Ursa goes from "Making effort, but screwed up along the way" to "Neglectful/abusive piece of shit that should have her kids taken away."
Comics!Ursa's idea fo "quality time with her kids" involves talking solely to Zuko and ignoring Azula, instead of interacting with both of them. She doesn't encourage them to spend time with each other like she did in the show. When she is banished, she visits both her kids - but only wakes Zuko up. He gets a sweet farewell so he always gets to remember that, no matter what happened, his mom loved him and did not want to leave him. Azula doesn't get a single word, and is left to believe her mom didn't even bother with her.
Worse of all, Ursa CHOOSES TO FORGET HER OWN KIDS. After she had explicitly said she does not believe they are truly safe living with Ozai. After she explicitly said to Zuko "Never forget who you are." Not to mention, she writes a letter with the fake claim that Zuko is actually NOT Ozai's kid - because she knows he will read it and get mad. She risked putting her son in danger just to piss off her husband. That's what she did to the kid she LIKED. How low would she go if the kid in danger was the kid she didn't care for? Oh, wait the comics answer that too. She never bothered asking ANYTHING about what had happened to her all those years (nor to the kid with a scar on his face, mind you), showed more empathy towards her when she COULDN'T remember who she was (and even then it was just a "If I really am your mom, I'm sorry I didn't love you enough." That's it. That's all Azula gets), and she doesn't do ANYTHING about Azula running away. No asking Zuko or someone else to find her, no crying about losing her again, no indication that she is worried about her safety even though she is all alone and mentally unstable.
The comics really did Azula dirty, and I HATE Ursa in it. It reached the point of "I don't want these two to make up, I want Azula to give a whole speech about how much her mom sucks, just like Zuko did with Ozai" because that's what she deserves. Show!Ursa made mistakes, Comics!Ursa IS a mistake. The sympathy for Azula despite her bad actions grows significantly on that version of the story, because how the fuck can we speak her to not be so mad at the world after all that?
But at last, we need to make an important distinction clear here: It doesn't matter if we are talking about the comics or the show, if we like or dislike Azula, if we do or don't want her to be redeemed, the simple fact still is that she WAS screwed over her entire life, her troubled relationship with her mom had a deep and longlasting impact on her mental health, and there was no way in hell she would have EVER been an innocent little angel that is 100% against everything her evil father does. It's just impossible considering her backstory.
And there is a very clear double-standard in how people talk about the idea of a redeemed Azula VS the reality of a redeemed Zuko. Both start with the premise of "This bad guy has understandable, sympathetic reasons to do bad things, since they were indoctrinated from birth and had a terrible family life", both include the character having to see how their actions are hurting them AND others (including those they care about, Zuko's "victim" being Iroh, while Azula's are Mai and Ty Lee. Plus, they've both hurt each other in some ways, some more deliberate than others), and both culminate with the character turning their life around, confronting those who wronged them, and finding a support system for themselves.
Yet one is treated as revolutionary despite not being the first redemption arc ever (nor the only redemption arc in the story itself), nor being perfectly written (because perfect writting doesn't exist), while the other is labelled as lazy, out of character, or "making excuses" for bad people just because they had a tough life (like Azula is an actual person). There is no thematic or moral difference between redeeming Zuko and redeeming Azula, especially in a show that says "EVERYONE has the potential for great good and great evil" and ends with Zuko telling his abuser he hopes he'll also have a change of heart someday, even if he is not sticking around to witness or actively try to make it happen.
Redeeming Azula is no different than redeeming Zuko. It's perfectly fine to want to just one of these things instead of both, but it is NOT a superior choice in anyway, and it's very hypocritical of the same fandom that criticizes the idea of a redeemed Azula because "mommy issues isn't a good enough reson" when they can't stop praising the redemption arc that has "the villain had daddy issues" as it's core premisse. Personal preference is one thing. Being a dick about it is another.
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bellatrixobsessed1 · 6 months
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I'd like to take a moment to talk about art styles. Above is from the new comic. Below are from season 3.
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What stands out to me about it is how young she looks in AitST compared to the show and the previous comics. Like alot of folks, myself included, have pointed out how much younger Azula looks in the show without makeup. I'd put the pics in there but I can't remember who to credit for them.
What I like about what Wartman has done so far is that he drew Azula in a way that makes her look as young as she is with her make up still on.
I don't know if it's the way he draws Azula's expressions or that (imo) her facial features look a bit softer. But Wartman's art style seems to highlight that Azula is still really young in a way that previous styles have not.
And this is something that I really appreciate.
I've said that is Azula is baby before but like that...that is baby.
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azure-firecracker · 17 days
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I have the threads of an Azula theory.
Disclaimer: This is about the Last Agni Kai, which I haven’t watched in a while because it makes me cry. Also this is a theory. It’s a train of thought. I’m not proclaiming it to be absolute truth or anything.
But I was thinking about Azula shooting lightning at Katara. Now, Azula isn’t exactly making the most strategic decisions here since she’s having a…rough time, to put it mildly. But I was also thinking about what her thought process could have been (since her exterior only really goes to show that she’s…having a rough time).
Now in Azula’s eyes, she knows she’s not winning this fight. Between Zuko having improved and her being a mess, she’s clearly fighting an uphill battle. She’s going to lose and she knows it. She also probably thinks Zuko won’t kill her. Although they’ve battled before, it would take really specific and clear intent to kill on his part since they’re not like…on an airship or a gondola. They’ve been shooting big up until this point, but they’ve also kind of been toying with one another.
Then Zuko asks her where her lightning is. Something she probably hasn’t considered using, because up until this point, she didn’t think she would have to. And she sees Katara. But here’s the thing: did Azula plan to have Zuko jump in front of the lightning and fail to redirect it? You have to keep in mind that Azula hasn’t seen the majority of Zuko’s interactions with Team Avatar. She hasn’t seen him be this selfless, hell, he’s never BEEN this selfless until now. Azula also, as we’ve seen, struggles to understand real, unconditional love. She certainly wouldn’t jump in front of lightning for anyone except maybe Ozai, and that’s…not unconditional. So would she understand this? Maybe not. And Azula doesn’t know anything about lightning redirection. What makes her think that Zuko wouldn’t be able to redirect the lightning if he jumped in front of it. After all, he did redirect quite a bit of it.
So if we follow these theories (and again, they’re only theories), this leaves one possibility: Azula was actually trying to kill Katara. But why? Azula doesn’t care about Katara. We’ve never seen her delight in violence for the sake of it. Why not focus on the fight at hand? If I were her, I wouldn’t want to risk involving Katara at all. She’s struggling enough as is, and even she should know that Katara’s a powerful opponent. They were evenly matched in Crossroads of Destiny.
Let’s think about Azula’s mental state right now. Her brother and her best friends have all abandoned her. Her father’s love, the one thing she hung onto, is meaningless and she’s only realizing this now. At her lowest point, she’s been reminded of her mother: the first person to call her a monster, and that is what she believes she is. No one loves her. She has nothing left to fight for. And the one scrap of validation she has left, which is being better than Zuko, is slipping away. What’s left? Why stay around in this state?
So: what if Azula was trying to kill Katara so that she could make Zuko furious enough to kill her?
Just a thought.
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akiizayoi4869 · 4 months
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The thing that I find to be so funny and annoying about Azula hate is that people just do not seem to realize that Zuko could have ended up just like her, if it wasn’t for the fact that he had positive influences in his life. One of the many reasons why Azula is the way she is, is because none of the adults thought that she was worth the time and effort. Which Ozai saw and took advantage of. Thanks to his parenting “skills” and other factors, she learned how to play the game very early on in life in order to survive. Zuko, however, never got the memo, therefore he did not know how to play the game. Azula learned how to play the game and Zuko did not. That’s like, one of the many things that sets these two apart from each other, and what ultimately makes Azula’s character so tragic in the end: she thought that learning how to play the game and playing that game well would be what would protect her and keep her safe, but instead it’s what led to her eventual downfall. Meanwhile, Zuko not learning/knowing how to play the game is what initially put him in harm’s way at the palace, but it’s inevitably what saved him and put him on the better path in the end.
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ilikepjo24 · 5 months
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Sokka could have killed Azula if he wanted to, indeed. He could force her to retreat even more, cause I her to fall. He could stab her. He didn't. He retreated and let Zuko throw a fireball at her, one that she managed to avoid.
That says a lot about Sokka and about everyone else on that rooftop as well.
Sokka didn't want to kill Azula. He could. And it would be convenient for him a Team Avatar if he had. But despite her imprisoning his dad and girlfriend, and ruining his dobs plan and killing his best friend and almost harming his sister on multiple occasions, he still doesn't want to kill Azula.
However, I don't think it's about being a good person or anything like that. Sokka was never afraid to do sketchy shit if that's what needed to be done. He invaded the Fire Nation when they were at their weakest. He crashed airships, killing hundreds, without even giving it a second thought. He killed the Combustion man without flinching. He wouldn't be afraid to kill Azula if that's what he thought was necessary.
And yet, he didn't. There could be multiple reasons why. It could be that he feared if the most important person (by FN standards) in the elevator thingy was dead, the guards wouldn't hesitate to cut the line immediately. It could be that he thought they had a chance of capturing her and having a vulnerable hostage, since they had better numbers. It could be for Zuko's sake. As a brother, it's possible he wouldn't be interested in killing a little sister infront of her older brother.
As for Suki and Zuko... They don't hate Azula. Sokka just threw away an opportunity of getting rid of an enemy and none of his allies that saw it were bothered. No one said "wtf are you doing? Why would you do that? You could have saved us so much trouble!". They are not eager to see Azula dead despite her being their enemy. Suki doesn't hate Azula, even after Azula imprisoned her. And Zuko doesn't hate Azula either, so all the fics of him having Azula endure any kind of torture are ooc, and they need to be stopped.
No, seriously, stop it.
When it comes to Ty Lee, I noticed that she didn't react to her friend almost dying? I don't think it because Ty Lee doesn't care for Azula, so it's either that she didn't notice because she was busy, or that she had trust in Azula's abilities to make it out alive.
And Azula is... interesting. She either doesn't value her life, or she values it, but she values her duty more. There's no other option. Because how TF is half your foot touching sweet death, and then you just continue without flinching or being scared or anything? You just move on? Honestly, whether Azula doesn't care about being alive that much, or does care, but would still find it honorable to die on duty, it's still interesting. It creates lot of questions about Azula's mental state at the moment and about her dedication to her father and country. Where does it end?
If it's neither of the two, then Azula was just being an arrogant-ass motherfucker which also creates questions. Is it because she trusted her own abilities a lot? Is it because she believed Zuko wouldn't let her die? Is it because she thought Sokka wouldn't kill her? And why is that? Does she consider him soft, cause he didn't hurt her in the dobs, or does he consider him too weak to kill her? And is that because he's a "water tribe savage" or because he's a nonbender?
Every time Azula is on screen, there are so many things to analyze!!
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